Anxiety in an uncertain world: Mindfulness vs. Avoidance

September 21, 2020

by: Jason Hallman MA, LPC, SRT

In the middle of Covid-19 quarantines, job uncertainty, and online verses face-to-face schooling, individuals across the country are experiencing a heightened state of anxiety. If you are one of the many shouting, “This is me…this is me,” then this post is for you. I have never met someone who enjoyed the experience of anxiety. The rapid heartbeat, sweaty palms, brain fog, and tingling sensations are not symptoms that humans enjoy. In fact, when most individuals experience these symptoms, they often attempt to convince themselves to “stop feeling this way” or they attempt to ignore the somatic sensations in their bodies. These are avoidance behaviors which make the anxiety worse. During experiential anxiety the cortex, or the part of the brain responsible for executive functioning, is suppressed due to activation of the amygdala. The amygdala is responsible for regulating our fight or flight response and an activated amygdala has an important role in experiential anxiety. So how do I calm an activated amygdala? The answer lies in mindfulness and attuning to the somatic sensations that our body uses to communicate that something is a threat or distressing. You can do this by closing your eyes, taking deep breaths, and asking yourself, “What is the anxious part of me trying to tell me?” Focus on your inner dialogue and bodily sensations. If you feel tightness in your chest ask yourself, “What is my chest trying to tell me?” Continue this dialogue attuning to your body and monitoring shifts in your level of distress. In time, you will probably notice a greater understanding of what is experientially triggering your anxiety and a lot of the somatic complaints will begin to subside. By having a mindful dialogue with your anxiety, you experientially train your amygdala to calm down and allow the cortex to regain more control of the situation. This approach helps you be your best self that God desires us to be as opposed to a self that feels crippled by fear. If you are experiencing bouts of anxiety and need some assistance in reducing your experiential anxiety, give us a call at Bridge of Hope today.